Since China entered the WTO and won its Olympic bid, the country has reduced hotel ownership restrictions. Starting in , foreign investors could own a majority stake in hotels, and in , wholly foreign-owned hotels were permitted. These moves cleared the way for an extensive expansion of foreign-owned hotels and other tourism facilities. Air quality, particularly in the summer, can be less than optimal, with particulate matter at alarmingly high levels.
Though Beijing has taken steps to improve air quality, such as ordering coal-burning power plants to reduce emissions, construction projects to halt during the period around the Olympic games, and heavily polluting factories to move out of the city, air quality will remain a worry for the athletes who participate in the games.
The city has established new wastewater treatment plants, solid-waste processing facilities, and green belts and built a fleet of clean buses for the games. Beijing has phased out ozone-depleting substances ahead of schedule, made use of water- or air-source heat pump systems to save energy in Olympic stadiums, replaced 47, old taxis and 7, diesel buses, and began requiring vehicles to meet EU emissions standards.
In addition, natural gas use of which is up tenfold , geothermal, and wind power are gradually replacing coal. The huge inflows of investment to support the Olympics and recreate Beijing have had an important ripple effect on economic growth, not simply in Beijing but in areas surrounding the capital. The Beijing Statistical Bureau estimates that spending on the Olympics has added 2. Advertising spending in China, Though preparations for the Beijing Olympics have gone well, has been a difficult year for China so far, tarnishing the games in some instances and making the environment in which they will be held much more challenging.
Heavily critical foreign media coverage of the game preparations, including coverage of air pollution and tainted food, has also removed some of the shine from the image of the games. Though Western nongovern- chinabusinessreview.
Few Chinese supported the positions of the demonstrators, and most Chinese were deeply offended by images of protestors disrupting the torch relay and the celebration of the Beijing Olympics.
Furthermore, the prospect of demonstrations during the games has prompted the PRC government to tighten the enforcement of visa application requirements and shorten the duration of some visas, which could hurt foreign businesses in the short term. The Internet and text messages spread word of the quake within minutes, well before the government was able to respond to it. In addition to government aid workers, nearly 1 million young Chinese volunteered within days to rush to Sichuan and help with the rescue effort, and as many as , may have actually gone.
Domestic media prominently broadcast news of foreign earthquake relief efforts, perhaps an attempt to soften the earlier harsh domestic reactions against France and other countries where there were demonstrations and protests against the torch relay. Western media coverage has been more sympathetic to China since the earthquake hit. At the same time, the earthquake has created a strong feeling of community, particularly among average Chinese who sympathize with the quake victims. The sense of unity and emotion will likely infuse the Beijing Olympics and create a strong sense of national pride and determination to succeed.
Though the expected economic downturn following the Beijing Olympics in August and the Paralympics in September will likely occur—particularly in the advertising sector—it will be minor and short-lived. Top Stories. Russia warns of Cuba, Venezuela deployment if tensions mount 1 hour ago.
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ABC News Live. The Beijing Games face challenges beyond the boycott. Meanwhile, some experts said that the International Olympic Committee should be blamed for the current controversy around the Beijing Olympics.
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